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Posts: 1498
Location: San Bernardino, California | I noticed the date gap in the serial number sequence between D+3 & E+4. I've got the original receipt for the breadwinner that I bought on June 9 1973. I remember it being in the store for months before I bought it, so my guess is that it was manufactured in either the last quarter of 1972 or the first quarter of 1973. The serial # is E00463. All of this leads me to suspect that the numbers beginning with E00 fall into that gap. |
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Posts: 93
Location: Canada | Even more mysterious, I have two Breadwinners which does not even have the E beginning. I've taken them to be one of the first production batches. The serials have 4 digits and both begin with the "10" and then two digits following that: 10XX. I think 1001 was the first breadwinner made if I am correct. I think these were made in 1973 but aren't listed in the serial databases as being electric solidbodies. |
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Posts: 7248
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Check out the reference page.
E+4 Digits = Jan 1973 - Feb 1975
E+5 digits = Feb 1975 - Jan 1980
I would assume yours E00463 was probably in 1975 (463 pretty low number) |
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Posts: 1498
Location: San Bernardino, California | Nope I bought it on June 9 1973. |
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August 2002
Posts: 110
| BruDev,
Wow, you bought your guitar almost 30 years ago and still remember the exact day when you got it. Must have gotten it on your birthday or something. I got mines a week or 2 ago and don't remember what day it was sent to me. |
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Posts: 1498
Location: San Bernardino, California | No, I just keep receipts for music stuff. Damned if I know why. |
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Posts: 7248
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Maybe someone else can weigh in on this? So far the serial lookup, especially the early years has been pretty accurate, but that only means somone like yourself hasn't found or reported the exceptions.
I'd like to figure this out and get the list correct, if someone has the info.
To break it down in simple terms (and catch anyone listening up to speed in one post) the info says that E + 5 digits spans 1975 - 1980, and you have a receipt (damn good reference in my book) that you have serial E00463 and bought it in 1973.
You got my attention.
Miles |
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Posts: 1498
Location: San Bernardino, California | It's a white one with large humbuckers, plain battery cover, stamped neck plate and output jack on the side. Also had the early pre-amp (the one that didn't have the ganged volume control). Has the thin (front to back) neck. I traded samova a blue one # E00174(?) that was exactly the same except blue. I also noticed that the 1975+ numbers don't have the zeros I.E. E17946.
It also has the nylon tuners. And the knobs that had the set screw and no special lettering (just 0-10) |
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November 2002
Posts: 93
Location: Canada | What about Breadwinners without the E beginning which start with 10?? I have two of these guitars. Were they before they started stamping Es before the serial?? First batch? |
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December 2001
Posts: 7248
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | The factors I use in trying to figure out the date without actually opening up the access panel and read pot dates which are only a hint also... (breath)... Does it have engraved or just stamped access panel and neck plate. Then the number of digits in the serial number, usually using the info in the ref section. There were a bunch of early ones (I have owned three) that the serial of "1" was obviously stamped at one point then the "044" or whatever stamped later which is obvious by the spacing and alignment.
I am really curious about the BruDev Breadwinner because it doesn't match, yet he has a reciept. By the way, is the serial number on the receipt? Just curious. But anyway, it dates via reference to 1975, however he bought the guitar in 73, go figure. Another mystery to solve. Moody????
Miles |
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January 2003
Posts: 1498
Location: San Bernardino, California | I'll try to get a picture of the receipt and the neckplate, probablly Monday or Tuesday.
To make things more interesting, I was looking at the manual that came with the guitar trying to find a copyright date and found this footnote under the picture for the trim controls.
"*On serial no's. E00021 through E001137 your colors are black instead of white and red instead of blue."
Looks to me as if E00021 was the first in the production run. Maybe the 1xxx numbers were for prototypes? |
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January 2003
Posts: 1498
Location: San Bernardino, California | Checked the pot codes:
Volume control = 304-7225 (25th week of 1972)
Tone control = 304-7238 (38th week of 1972)
Haven't got the pictures yet (Work was a mad-house today). Maybe tommorow. |
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January 2003
Posts: 1498
Location: San Bernardino, California | Just uploaded the pictures of the receipt, neck plate & manual footnote. BruDev in the gallery.
I was just looking at the Model Cronology (page 126) in the back of "The History Of The Ovation Guitar" (by Walter Carter ISBN 0-7935-5948-0 or ISBN 0-7935-5876-X)and it states that the 1251 Breadwinner was introduced in June 1972, the 1252 Deacon in January 1973. |
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Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Hi Bru,
I kinda lost track of exactly what you are trying to figure out here. You have the recipt and such, and based on the neckplate and access panel alone it is an early (probably 72) model. I'm thinking that they just put EOOxxx as a precation of how many guitars they were going to make, but it sure makes things confusing 30+ years later. I have ones without any E just a 4-digit number 1084 as example. In anycase it's probably not the first run, but certainly the first year or so, and you have a way to prove it. Ovation serial numbers not matching up, especially in the early days, is not a surprise to anyone. I guess if we can somehow confirm the significance of the E00, that would be helpful, but at this point, it's one guitar with one serial number. Can't even plot a range unfortunately. |
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January 2003
Posts: 1498
Location: San Bernardino, California | I got to wondering if Ovation still had warranty information from that early. Sure would be a good source of Serial # to year correspondence. |
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Serial # gap
